Chapter 29
Catalyst for Change
Astra's head tilted almost unconsciously as she staved off the urge to sleep. She had been counting the days since she had been treated like some prisoner and had been placed in this cell. It was day seven now. A full week. She had of course been well fed by her captors, mainly some way of justifying their humanity she supposed. She wasn't a fool to act the tough girl and deny the food either.
She could at least take appreciation in the fact that she was not alone. Luna came to visit her every day, talking to her about her training with Neuge and the adventures she had been on. It wasn't so much that she was hearing Luna talk that was interesting, but rather just hearing the joy that came from her voice as she spoke that made Astra's day.
"You know what I could really do with right now? Kit's pie. Oh my Kingdom Hearts, I haven't had some in like forever," Astra drooled.
"She always used to send some pumpkin pie to us for Halloween. Absolutely magnificent and it was like it only got tastier each year," Luna replied.
"Oh just make me more hungrier why don't you," Astra said. She fell in the most exaggerated way possible to the floor and let out a big sigh.
"Oh sure, well one Christmas, Aunt Kit made this exquisite strawberry and rhubarb pie and I was like WOW so-"
"It was sarcasm genius." Astra rolled her eyes and sought to stare up at the ceiling.
"I know… Aerith makes some great pies herself though so maybe I can convince her to make some for you. Despite what it looks like, you do have people who are worried for you here. We're just more of a silent majority," Luna informed.
"That may be true, but a silent majority may as well be nothing for what it's worth," Astra dismissed with little enthusiasm in her voice. Luna however seemed determined that she would be able to get something to work.
"We're working on it, or pulling a few strings to make it sound cooler. How are you enjoying your new room by the way?" she asked.
"Oh, it's perfect. At least they gave me a bed to sleep on, that's something. Of course I'm a bit disappointed there's no bucket. We can always swap if you like," Astra proposed and her friend let out a howl of laughter.
"Nice try. Hey, what are you smirking at?" Luna asked as Astra sat up with a massive grin on her face.
"No, I just remembered something. You remember when you thought horoscopes were a real thing? You'd always be looking in the paper just to read both of ours… you don't still believe them, do you?" she asked.
"No, I'd like to think that I've had some choice in all things I've seen, even if I only saw them because of someone else in the first place. It did lead to some pretty philosophical debates between us though like what if we each have a star in the sky and that star is connected to another star, like a soul mate," Luna said.
"Oh, don't remind me. I felt shivers down my neck for days when you told me my star was compatible with Biggs and Wedge's. Those two dunderheads were like creepy twins who followed each other everywhere the other went. And to think they were popular!" Astra complained.
"They reminded me of those two jester looking creeps that I saw when I was in Celes' room. One barely seeming to function without the other," Luna said. "I swear they're like parallels. Using intimidation to threaten and belittle others… I know this might seem like some childish fantasy, but I'd like to think I was given the Keyblade to help others stand up to people like them. I would never want anyone in my situation again. Biggs and Wedge, Abraxas, Maleficent, the Reapers… they all try to use intimidation and fear to control others."
"Do you see yourself in others then? Those you want to protect?" Astra asked.
"I wouldn't say that, I'm just a big loser but I do know what it's like to be alone and think no one is there for you or cares," Luna answered. When looking back on her life so far, she could be proud to say that at least she had Astra when she had no one else at school. At first she had thought their friendship some cunning trick to make fun with her, and she had been rather distant with Astra even though she was nothing but engaging and enthusiastic in getting to know Luna. But she had been wrong. Astra had never once turned her back even when it meant losing in an instant the friendships that had probably taken years for her to build. Sometime Luna wondered if Astra even regretted it but she could never outright ask the question. Even if it was only one person that was there for her, that one person was all she had needed, and now she had so much more than one.
"Here we are talking so normally as if there isn't a bar and door in between us. How long do you think they can keep me in here?"
"Don't worry. I'm already hatching a plan to bust you out in the worst case scenario," Luna joked.
"I'm looking forward to your oh so grand and excellent plan then," Astra snorted in response. She stood back up and lay down on her low bed cupping her hands together and placing them on her slowly rising and sinking chest. Luna couldn't understand why they were so adamant about locking Astra up. She was sure Astra knew that they couldn't keep her there forever and they probably knew that too.
"I have class soon. Professor Neuge sets out her own homework if you can believe it. Who has time to study when there are people to help and worlds to save?" Luna asked with much smugness in her voice.
"You're not usually the one to complain about homework." Astra raised her eyebrows.
"I'm not usually one to complain about reading. It's when I don't have any choice in what I'm reading that I get bored, as they made us do so much back in school," Luna corrected.
"Anyway, I should be off or Neuge is gonna have my head faster than the Queen of Hearts ever could."
"Wha-?"
"It's a long story," Luna answered while stretching.
"Don't worry, it's not like I have the time for it or anything in here," Astra said sarcastically.
Luna laughed and gave a firm nod. "Touché," she accepted. She waved at Astra before hurrying off down the long corridor. As impatient as Astra was, untrusting she was not especially when it came to her best friend. Astra had been quite patient in searching for her friend and it had eventually paid off, she had told Luna all about it. Now it was Luna's turn to make sure that Astra was safe.
Sora was despondent for the remainder of the day, an unusual action for the usually talkative teen. Despite reassurances from Kairi and Namine that his fate was not yet set in stone, it already felt as if the world had completely abandoned him for some reason. Any noise that would have been in the foreground seemed to melt away until it became insignificant ambient noise. He felt like a new-born baby learning how to walk for the first time as he became conscious of his own feet and where he was walking. He was so used to being a carefree individual that it was as if for the first time, he had been put in shoes completely foreign to him and was able to see the world in a way he would never have considered otherwise.
But how couldn't they expect him to act differently after dropping a bombshell like that? Well, two actually. The first being that Namine had somehow discovered she was a Seer, to which Sora was baffled by and yet somehow, it wasn't as surprising as it should have been. He had seen Yeul in Namine so many times that this revelation only added to the problem.
It was the news of impending death that had shocked him to the core. He had asked for it so it wasn't like he blamed Namine for telling him, in fact, his own curiosity was certainly to blame, though he had a feeling he would have found out eventually.
His unusual stiffness did not go unnoticed at the start of his joint training session either. At first he wished that Luna would've stopped glancing at him worryingly, so much so that he tried to avoid looking at her before realizing that he was doing the same thing Namine did to him.
"You have to tell me what's wrong later. That's definitely not a face I would expect from you," she whispered as Neuge walked into the room. Of all the things he could talk to Luna about, he wasn't sure this was one thing she needed to here right now.
"It's nothing, don't worry about it," he assured her with a smile that filled him more with guilt than resolution.
Neuge stood in her normal spot and observed them silently making the atmosphere even more uneasy. Had she known about it as well, he wondered?
"I've brought the two of you together again for a lesson that will require both of you to give your all. I'm sure you'll understand once you've accomplished it and as they say it's better to show, not tell. Today, the two of you will be learning how to dance!"
Neuge smirked as Luna and Sora exchanged looks of confusion with one another before both gawking simultaneously.
"Sorry?"
"WHAT?"
"I'm not so sure what you're surprised about. Surely you knew that fighting and dancing are often said to be synonymous with one another. It's all in the timing, the rhythm, the beat of the battle," Neuge explained.
"Th- that's beside the point. I'm not… dancing!" Luna protested.
"Speaking of which, didn't you use to do ballet?" Sora brought up intentionally.
"Even better! You have a starting point and we can all learn from each other!" Neuge grinned like a cheeky kid as a furious blush appeared on Luna's face.
"Well you didn't have to mention it out loud, did you?" Luna mumbled. "Listen, I'm not really sure I can-"
"Don't shut yourself out before you've even tried. You'll understand very quickly that a big part of fighting comes from the teamwork involved. Masterful synchronization… that's what it's all about," Neuge told them.
"Oh dear. I'm still not sure about this…"
"Sounds like fun. Let's give it a try!" Sora exclaimed. Right now, he'd take just about anything that could lift up his spirits. Plus after training so hard for the past few weeks, he was more than ready for a little break.
"That's the spirit Sora. You know, you could learn a lot from him Luna," Neuge said only to receive a mocking scowl in return. The next few hours had both the apprentices finding out how difficult the task was than expected. Sora expecting to joke around and have fun soon came to find out that Neuge expected the same level of dedication for this as all the other training sessions.
He took Luna's fingers into his and paused noticing how warm they were, but at the sight of Neuge watching him, he looked up to meet Luna's eyes and began waltzing to the music, trying to match her movements. It goes without saying that Sora somewhat made the task harder than it had to be given the ginormous shoes he was wearing. Neuge found herself looking down at their feet most of the time and letting out a loud sigh.
"Have you ever considered getting shoes your size?" Neuge asked.
"Hey! They're pretty comfy-"
"Ouch! Sora, watch where you're stepping!"
"Sorry," he apologized clumsily slightly retracting away from Luna before realizing he was too far to make anything work. He moved closer back in and so set the repeated motion of him having to judge his distance. They both came away from their first session far more exhausted than they thought they'd have been. A beautiful red glow permeated the glass windows of the training hall indicating that it was evening. Time was the one thing that seemed to be the same in this world.
"Wasn't as easier as you'd thought it would have been, huh?" Neuge sympathized, or pretended to anyway.
"Not exactly but I think we're getting there," Sora assured her and Luna nodded in confirmation.
Noticing they both seemed completely winded by their training, Neuge nudged her head. "We're done for today. Go and refresh yourselves for tomorrow."
"Master, I've been wondering about the strange things that have been happening for a while now and well… I was wondering what you thought about it?" Luna asked before Sora could take a single step. It seemed his relief would have to wait. "I mean I don't think the events are separate, they're occurring too close to another to think that, right?"
Neuge nodded. "It's only natural to come to that conclusion. We as Keyblade wielders choose to separate ourselves from the world and by doing so we disconnected ourselves from our home worlds and from any type of organization. We've served the people to atone for the sins committed by Keyblade users before in us in what I'd say would be our darkest hour. Whereas we are guardians tasked with the protection of the world order, they were warriors steeped in the blood of innocents. Of course in order to break away from the shells of the past we had to step out of the hourglass that is the world. We observe the individual grains of sand from the outside, and while they fall separately, they begin from the same point of origin and end at the same point of destination. A Keyblade wielder should learn that events are effects never without cause. There are no coincidences in fate, and just as it has brought you and Sora together has it connected the chain of events that currently unfolding."
"Everything is connected…" Sora uttered remembering a particular event that had happened back on the islands before he had begun his first journey. At first he would have said that his going into that cave and meeting that brown cloaked figure had set about what was to happen. Having learned that Xehanort had originally been from the Destiny Islands however had changed his opinion somewhat. Maybe those events had been set in motion even before he had entered that cave. It wasn't like he was the center of the universe.
"But isn't it difficult to remain impartial like that? You're distancing yourself from the problems others face. That can't be a good thing. When others have problems, you need to be there for them in their time of need. You can't just abandon them," Luna countered.
"I never said those were my opinions. They're simply what someone has told me, and what I have passed on to you. It's up to you to read between the lines of those words and that's different for everyone. But you're right, and perhaps that's what compelled others to do the things they did. Because they were unsatisfied with the way we were doing things," Neuge said.
"You mean like Xehanort and Abraxas?" Sora asked.
"Not that they were right, but they weren't wrong either otherwise they'd have never come to their conclusions in the first place," Neuge said. "But you also have to realize that sometimes interfering in others' affairs makes them worse off than they were before you intervened. It's a question of picking and choosing, but I… I swear if you tell Yen Sid about this I will kill you both, but I've had a change of heart. I do think that you two are different somehow. I know you'll come to the right decision when it counts and… maybe you two will be the catalyst for the change we need."
At this Sora and Luna grinned at each other, not because of what she had said but because it seemed like Neuge was warming up to them.
"Couldn't resist our charms after all, huh?"
Neuge rolled her eyes at Sora's comment. "Hey, you're this close to being on the receiving end of a Neuge noogie."
"What in the world is a… on second thought, I don't even want to know," Sora dismissed with waving hands.
Arriving back in Radiant Garden, Sora and Luna both came across Donald lecturing Kairi on advance forms of magic.
"If you're fighting a Fat Bandit, what magic would be most effective?"
"Fire?" Kairi replied to Donald's question noticing the other two behind Donald.
"Quack?! NO! Ice. It's a fire elemental. I don't even understand how you could get that wrong. Even Goofy could get that right," assessed a flabbergasted Donald.
"Well, how else are you supposed to burn all that fat silly?" Kairi said with a playful grin.
"…I can't tell if you're joking or not, and I thought Sora was bad. Did he pick it up from you or vice versa?"
"No, I'm being totally serious. I really did think that fire spewing Fat Bandits would be weak to fire."
"Uh huh… and I'm done here. Ach! Sora, Luna!" Donald exclaimed upon turning to leave.
"And a duck's weakness? Well, the magic of sarcasm works pretty well I'd say," Luna said.
"Hey guys. He's just advising me on a few things for my training but he seems to think I've never used magic before in my life," Kairi told them.
"He must want you to be his esteemed protégé Kairi," Sora said. Kairi's eyes stayed on Sora's with a worrying look. And here he thought he could forget so easily. Except that he did, because the next person, or people, that the four encountered turned out to be a complete shocker.
"Mulan? What are you doing here?" Donald called, alerting the others to their old friend along with five other girls that Sora had never seen before.
"Hello everyone. I was chosen by Yen Sid to protect these five here. I would've have tried to find you sooner but he told me that it would look too suspicious if we were to hang out," Mulan explained. "I'm kind of undercover at the moment no less so I'm sure you'll understand."
"That explain why you look so different Mulan," Donald said. She was wearing similar matching everyday attire to what most in people in Radiant Garden wore. "But who are they?"
Mulan watched as the five girls giggled behind her. "You can't tell? I guess the magic really must be effective. Then again, you and Sora weren't exactly the best when it came to seeing others for who they really are so… what do you think Luna?"
"Hmm? Why would I know…?" After squinting though, Luna came up with a very different answer. "Jasmine? Is that you?"
"We're looking pretty different, aren't we?" Jasmine's use of the description 'pretty' didn't exactly paint a full picture. Jasmine and the other Princesses had gone through radical transfigurations to hide their appearances. Other than facial structure, skin tone, the color of their pupils and voice, they would have otherwise been unrecognizable.
"We were told it was for our own protection. The worlds are in danger once again and Alice has gone missing," Belle said.
"So Yen Sid brought you here to make it easier to guarantee your safety. Well I have to say, the disguises certainly are working. You had me fooled for a second there. I probably wouldn't have even made the connection if you hadn't asked me to," Luna said.
"We do our best to surprise, not that we've revealed anything to anyone else. That would be bad, oh! Except for Riku of course," Snow White said.
"Riku knew? When?" Sora asked.
"Why, it was about a week ago. Didn't he tell you?" she asked.
Sora froze up at Snow's question before grinding his teeth together. "No. He didn't say a single thing."
"So how are you enjoying your stay in the garden then?" Kairi asked Mulan.
"It was quite the… culture shock. I knew that you guys weren't from around where we lived but to think you travelled all over and saw places like this…wow!"
Luna laughed. "That was my reaction too, and then some. How's Mushu by the way?"
"He actually came with me. I told him that it would be weird for people to see a talking lizard walking about and then after promptly reminding me he was a dragon he followed me anyway. I imagine he's sleeping next to a warm fireplace right about now," Mulan said.
"Sounds like Mushu. Listen, hate to dash on you but I just remembered I promised to help Colette with something. Was nice seeing you all again," Sora said before taking off in a hurry.
Luna watched him run off, surprised at the sudden commitment and hurry before turning to Kairi.
"Hey Kairi… did Sora seem a little distracted today to you?" she tilted her head thoughtfully.
"He didn't- um, I mean, I didn't notice anything," Kairi said. It was as if she had suddenly changed her answer on the fly by her switch of tone. "But I'm sure whatever it is, he needs some time alone to figure things out. The last few months have been hard on him."
But Luna wanted to know. She couldn't stand to see pain on the face of someone who was an inspiration for her. She wanted to follow, but by the time she had decided to do so, Sora was long gone.
Sora arrived at the computer room in Ansem's study and searched the desks in the room until he had found the thing he was looking for. He was not going to Colette's house to help, and he hadn't even promised to help her with anything. It had all been a lie to cover up the fact that he was coming here.
"Greetings Sora. How are you doing today?" The one person he was afraid of coming across spoke to him.
"Hey Tron. How many times do I have to tell you? No need to be so formal, it sounds all wrong. Just say hey or howdy!" Sora told him while looking at the door that led down into the dungeons.
"Howdy? I've not quite heard that one I'm afraid," Tron said with an added laugh.
"You get the point. I'm sure you have plenty of time to go through a thesaurus and find a few words that'll make you sound more hip."
"Hm, I think I'll try that," Tron agreed.
"Say Tron, you think you can open up the door to the castle basement? I need to talk with Astra," Sora said.
A buzz was heard followed by a clicking sound leading to the door on his right sliding open with a calm hiss. He gave Tron his thanks before descending down the stairs. When he eventually reached the bottom of the long flight of stairs, Sora's shaky and unhinged thoughts became steadfast and clear as they were when he had first made his decision.
He made his way down the long white corridor and stopped just outside Astra's cell, simply watching her. Eventually she noticed him and sat up from her bed looking back.
"When I look at you, why do I always feel so angry?" Sora asked. "I think it's because you'd go so far as to defend Moira's Crescent. Do they mean so much to you that you don't value your own freedom?"
"What's it to you?" she eventually replied.
"And there's that too. You hate me and I'm not sure why. I feel like I should know more about you since your Luna's friend but you don't seem to want that."
"Disappointment most of your life will do that to you, you'll find."
"Disappointment? Such as…?"
"Nice try detective," Astra said with a small smile.
"Had to try," Sora said. "So the reasons you don't like me, I at least deserve to hear that. You've said before that you didn't trust me to protect Luna, and you were right. I don't trust myself either, but I'm getting stronger. But I don't think that's everything… Desiree told me about the vision Yeul had."
"Then you know why they're coming for you."
"Do the visions… do they always come true?" Sora found it particularly hard to ask this question.
"I'm not sure. I guess you'll find out eventually… or not." Astra kept her eyes fixated on him with a blank stare as she spoke.
"How do I find them?"
"That's not how it works. If anyone will be doing the finding, it's them. But you know that already of course," Astra said in a low voice.
Sora growled before rushing forward and giving the door a swift kick causing Astra to jump at the sudden action in surprise. He grabbed onto the bars and gave her an intense stare. "I'm not here to play games with you and right now I really couldn't give a- I don't care what you think of me. I won't live my life out of fear, and I won't be a slave to a silly prophecy. Give me a straight answer NOW!" Sora ended in a furious roar that echoed throughout the hall.
"So this is person who wants to protect my friend. Now I know. You'd go so far as to lead her to her death through your silly crusade," Astra said albeit shakily. "I think you're the one who needs to think about who exactly is playing games here."
Sora looked down at the floor before resting his forehead on their nearby wall. How far would he have been willing to go, he wondered, if she hadn't brought up Luna? Why did he feel so constantly angry and stressed nowadays? Despite the meditation he took during the mornings and just before bed, it did little to improve his mood especially when things like this happened.
He dug into his pocket and pulled out the object he had retrieved from the desk earlier. He guided the key towards the door's keyhole and twisted, hearing the responding click to indicate the door was open. He gave the door a push and walked into the cell.
Astra gave him a puzzled look. "What are you doing?"
"Getting you out of here," he said looking anywhere but directly at her. "Or would you prefer to stay here?"
"What are you playing at?"
"Nothing."
"Then why are you doing this?"
"I don't really know myself. Maybe because you shouldn't be here. Moira's Crescent must really mean something to you if you're willing to remain silent like this. I don't understand it but you do, and that's enough for me. I know what it's like to put others before myself first. That's what you do for friends so… I can't stop you. I don't have the right when I've been such a bad friend myself," he answered.
Astra frowned at this before standing tall and stretching. "How did you open the door anyway? Riku told me Keyblades wouldn't work."
Sora showed her the small key in his hand before pocketing it again. "I'm sure I'm going to wake up to a list of endless questions tomorrow since all the security cameras are going to spot us. I've been quite the troublemaker today, all for you."
"Well I'd be lying if I said I didn't appreciate it. Let's get going then!" With that said Astra followed Sora all the way back up the stairs and into the computer room.
"Sora, is everything okay? What is Astra doing with you?" Tron asked from the computer speakers.
"The computer knows my name?" Astra whispered at Sora.
"It's one of those new-fangled technical thingies, you know what security is like these days," Sora said. He hushed Tron before continuing onward with Astra. Soon they reached the castle postern and Astra blinked rapidly at the first sight of natural light in a while. She breathed inward and slowly whistled out in joy.
"Well, you're free now. Nothing like the smell of fresh air in the evening to wake you up, huh?" Sora folded his arms and watched as Astra ran over to the walls to check out the town.
"You know Sora you are not bad at all. I suppose I owe you now."
Sora laughed. "First Neuge and now you? What am I doing right this week? Well, just go be with your friends, you don't really owe me anything."
"But I need to tell Luna-"
"You can't. If you're caught they'll send you straight back to the cell. If you want you can give me a message and I'll pass it on to her though," Sora said.
Astra considered this before turning to meet him. "Okay. Tell her that she needs to stop eating Sea Salt Ice Cream. Seriously, it will make her fat and she needs to keep that ass in perfect shape if she's gonna keep fighting-"
Sora interrupted with a shaking head. "I am so not telling her that."
Astra laughed and winked. "Fair enough. Then tell her that I haven't given up on her yet, but she's made a wonderful friend either way."
Sora raised his eyebrows in amazement and pointed at himself only for Astra to nod in return. He gave a broad grin and nodded. "Gotcha."
"You're not the only one who needs to become stronger. I'm sure we'll be meeting each other again quite soon. Then we'll see who Luna prefers but until that time comes, take care of her."
Astra summoned her Keyblade and cut through the air to summon a corridor of light. She gave Sora a final smile before walking in. The portal closed quickly behind her leaving Sora to his own thoughts. He was sure he made the right choice here, but the repercussions here seemed obvious. He had reconciled with a hard-headed girl but his friendship with one of his friends was about to suffer as a result.
Sora's going through his rebellious streak right now apparently. So, if you're wondering when the next Disney world is (GOD, what is this a Kingdom Hearts story or something?), you won't have to wait for long, and to make it better it'll be a world I've wanted in the series for a long time and hope is in KH3.
